News Releases

Youth Power Summit to be Held as Part of Ithaca College Earth Day Activities

ITHACA, NY—Young people from throughout the region are invited to learn how they can take leadership roles in advocating for clean energy, local food and social justice at the Youth Power Summit, being held at Ithaca College on Saturday and Sunday, April 20–21, in conjunction with the annual celebration of Earth Day.

Participation in the summit, which will include lectures, panel presentations and workshops, is free. Activities will take place from 9:30 a.m.–7:30 p.m. on Saturday and 9:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. on Sunday, in the Park Center for Business and Sustainable Enterprise on the IC campus. Participants are asked to register in advance at http://youthpowersummit2013.wordpress.com.

The summit is a youth-led project intended to create a space where young people, students, faculty, community members and business leaders can converge to explore the intersections of economic, social and climate justice issues and develop the tools, organizing strategies and collective frameworks to actively pursue a vision for a just, sustainable and prosperous community.

The summit will follow four main consecutive tracks: “Putting Justice at the Center,” “Envisioning a Just and Sustainable Future,” “Transforming Vision into Action” and “Transforming Action into Community,” and there will be three Saturday keynote speakers:
• Juliet Schor, the cofounder and director of the Center for the New American Dream and the author of “Plenitude: The New Economics of True Wealth” and “The Overspent American: Why We Want What We Don’t Need”
• Lilian Molina, a youth development expert and community organizer who served as the inaugural director of the Environmental Justice program at the Energy Action Coalition, the hub of the U.S. youth climate justice movement
• Esteban Kelly, a food justice activist who cofounded the national worker co-op AORTA — the Anti-Oppression Resource and Training Alliance

While geared toward young people, those of all ages interested in the program and/or local youth empowerment are encouraged to attend. The summit is part of the Climate Smart & Climate Ready conference, a major regional initiative, in partnership with the New Economics Institute, an organization committed to building a “new economy” that prioritizes the well-being of people and the planet.